Small Business in the Age of Cyberattacks

The House Committee on Small Business recently debated this $500 billion threat.

The greatest threat to your small business might be lurking right in front of you.

Steve Chabot, the House Committee on Small Business chairman, underscored the threat of cyberattacks at a congressional hearing on July 6 and urged government leaders to take action to increase cybersecurity.

In his testimony, Chabot cited a 2012 Verizon Enterprise study, which found that 71 percent of cyberattacks occur in businesses with 100 employees or fewer.

“Our government simply does not have the resources to address all of the cybersecurity issues faced by businesses, critical infrastructure, and government systems let alone those faced by small businesses,” Nova J. Daly, a senior public policy adviser at the Washington, D.C.-based law firm Wiley Rein told The Daily Caller.

Later in the hearing, Justin Zeefe, co-founder and chief strategy officer of the cybersecurity consulting firm Nisos Group, testified that these attacks will cost the global economy $445 billion by the end of 2016.

There are broader implications from these small business security risks as well. In 2013, hackers gained access to Target’s credit card database and stole 40 million credit card numbers, and 70 million addresses, phone numbers, and other pieces of personal information belonging to customers, Bloomberg reported after the hack.

Hackers were able to gain access to Target’s database through one of their HVAC vendors. The vendor had access to Target’s network for billing and contract purposes but may have had less extensive security on their computer network than the retail giant, CNN reported.

“The best thing a small business can do is ensure that their network is relatively secure by following the protocols that are standard across all industries,” Zeefe said.